Sherrill sitting on monster $4.6 million warchest

Some news for the seven Republicans angling to run for Congress in New Jersey’s 11th district next year: Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D-Montclair) has $4,561,710 in the bank after raising a whopping $627,976 during the third quarter of 2021.

That means Sherrill has 173% more money in the bank than she did at the same point two years ago when her cash-on-hand was a still impressive $1,673,938 in the bank.

As a candidate for re-election last year, Sherrill raised $5,494,469 and spent $3,807,868.  He decision to hold on to her money while still decisively defeating Republican Rosemary Becchi has helped boost her campaign warchest.

Sherrill demonstrated early fundraising prowess as a congressional candidate, amassing more than $1.2 million by the end of 2017.  Her cash-on-hand helped frighten one of the most powerful Republicans on Capitol Hill, House Appropriations Committee Chairman Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-Harding), out of the race just two weeks after Sherill released her fundraising numbers.

She raised $8,610,281 in 2018, flipping a seat Republicans had held for 34 years.

Sherrill won her House race by 46,262 votes, 57%-42%.

In total, Sherrill has raised over $17.3 million since becoming a candidate for Congress in May 2017.

The 11th district has trended Democratic since it was last drawn a decade ago with 24,176 more Republicans than Democrats.

The current 11th has 10,021 more Democrats than Republicans and Joe Biden carried the district by a 53%-46% margin.  Donald Trump won the 11th by a narrow one-point margin in 2016, when there were 13,813 more Republicans than Democrats; Frelinghuysen won his twelfth term by a 58%-39% margin that year.

Seeking the chance to challenge Sherrill in a district that won’t be drawn for another four months: Morris County Commissioner Tayfun Selen; Larry Casha, a Republican state committeeman and former Kinnelon council president; former Assistant Passaic County Prosecutor Paul DeGroot; Tom Toomey, a former Republican National Committee staffer; screenwriter Hillery Brotschol; Sparta attorney Robert Kovic; and Patrick Quinn, a Pompton Lakes realtor.

Becchi, a former tax counsel to the U.S. Senate Finance Committee, has told Republican leaders that she wants a rematch against Sherrill.